Verizon XPERIA Play arrives May 19 with seven game bundle

Verizon Wireless has confirmed launch details for the Sony Ericsson XPERIA Play, which will drop on May 19. Priced at $199.99 with a new, two-year agreement, the Android smartphone will be pre-loaded with seven bundled games.

They will consist of Madden NFL 11 (EA Sports), Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior (Digital Legends), Asphalt 6: Adrenaline (Gameloft), The Sims 3 (EA), Star Battalion (Gameloft), Crash Bandicoot (Sony Playstation) and Tetris. There’ll be a further fifty titles available in the V CAST Apps store for download.

Online availability will kick off on May 19, while the Play will arrive in Verizon stores on May 26. More information on the smartphone in our full review.

Press Release:

Verizon Wireless And Sony Ericsson Take Mobile Gaming To The Next Level With The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY

The World’s First PlayStation® Certified Smartphone Combines PlayStation®-Quality Gaming Experience with the Latest Android Smartphone Technology

05/17/2011

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Take conference calls, send emails and win football’s biggest game, all on one device. The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY, exclusive for a limited time for Verizon Wireless, redefines mobile gaming by combining all the features customers expect from a fully-featured smartphone with the ultimate gaming experience.

Powered by Android 2.3, Gingerbread, the Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY will come pre-loaded with seven game titles including, Madden NFL 11 (EA Sports), Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior (Digital Legends), Asphalt 6: Adrenaline (Gameloft), The Sims 3 (EA), Star Battalion (Gameloft), Crash Bandicoot (Sony Playstation) and Tetris. Customers can expand their video game library with more than 50 game titles available at launch for download via V CAST Apps. Customers easily become gamers with the slide out game pad revealing a directional keypad, dual analog touch joystick, two shoulder buttons and the four iconic PlayStation® symbol keys: circle, X, square and triangle.

Additional Features:

1 GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon® II processor with Adreno 205 GPU
Adobe Flash Player
4-inch multi-touch display
5-megapixel rear-facing camera
VGA front-facing camera for still shots and video chatting
Support for Google Mobile Services including Gmail™, YouTube™, Google Talk, Google Search, Google Maps and access to more than 200,000 apps available to download from Android Market™
Mobile hotspot capability- share 3G connection with up to five Wi-Fi-enabled devices
Pricing and Availability

The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY will be available for pre-order online at www.verizonwireless.com beginning May 19, and in stores on May 26 for $199.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.
Sony Ericsson Xperia™ Play customers will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan and a smartphone data package. Nationwide Talk plans begin at $39.99 for monthly access and an unlimited smartphone data plan is $29.99 for monthly access.
Game Developers

The gaming experience can only get better as additional games are being created. Developers have the flexibility to focus on content and not worry about binary file sizes when submitting apps to V CAST Apps. Developers can visit http://developer.verizon.com/play for additional information about game development for the Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY.
For more information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com. To learn more about the Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY, visit www.sonyericsson.com.